How Going Gluten-Free Transformed our Home

Hi, I’m Melissa,

Beth asked me to explain how going gluten-free made a difference in our household. I have a daughter and two sons with varying degrees of dyslexia. Going gluten-free improved our family life by 80%.

So how did we go gluten-free?

I accidentally stumbled upon my children’s gluten problems after we’d been on holiday. When the kids were young, we found going on holiday too stressful. Our boys are hard work, and their behaviours mean that being out of our home routines on holiday is often more stressful than it’s worth.

However, when our youngest was eight, my partner and I decided to risk going away and booked a family trip to Vietnam. Once there, we were pleasantly surprised that the children’s behaviour was much better than usual, and we had a fantastic time. The children enjoyed the rice-based Vietnamese cuisine; no bread passed their lips while we were away.

When we got home, our delivery from the local bakery was waiting for us on the doorstep. The loaves were still warm and smelled delicious, so we all tore off large chunks and gorged ourselves on fresh bread.

That week the kids’ behaviour was horrendous.

One son ran wild in traffic outside our home, and the other son’s behavioural issues escalated significantly while our daughter rolled around on the floor, crying over trivial things.

What was different?

I wracked my brain, trying to figure out what was different, then remembered they hadn’t eaten any bread on holiday. I decided to investigate the effect gluten was having on them. I said nothing but removed all traces of gluten, sat back, and watched.

The problematic behaviours quietened down and then stopped altogether. I maintained the gluten-free diet for a month, after which I reintroduced a loaf made with spelt flour. I immediately saw an escalation of their behavioural issues.

A lightbulb moment! They behaved better when gluten-free.

I told the children what I had discovered. To my surprise, they asked to remain gluten-free; having them on board made meal planning more manageable. The children know how bad they feel when they eat gluten and are keen to avoid it. They feel ill whenever they accidentally eat gluten.

I wish someone had told me years ago about the link between gluten and difficult behaviour because going gluten-free transformed my family.

Read more about how nutrition can help neurodiverse kids here.

Being overtired may also affect your child’s behaviour. Here are some tips to aid sleep.

Speechify is an app that can help dyslexic children as it reads online text. Here is my affiliate link.

Has being gluten-free helped your household?